


That One Waffle House

by KolorfulKyandii



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Under the Red Hood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-12
Updated: 2018-04-12
Packaged: 2019-04-21 21:17:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14293647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KolorfulKyandii/pseuds/KolorfulKyandii
Summary: Prompt - Not enough people out there appreciate that Jason Todd is still legally dead and Vicki Vale is going to see him in the window of a waffle house at 2 AM and loose her f**king mind.





	That One Waffle House

Vicki Vale was not having a good day.

First, her beta editor accidentally skipped a typo, meaning the last, most dramatic sentence of her article was completely ruined. Cue her boss firing the editor, again, for ruining a headline. Next, she was sent on a wild goose chase of leads saying the youngest Wayne boy had been caught playing with fire by a cop, arrested, and sent to juvenile detention. She immediately went to visit him - only to find an empty cell, much to the guard's confusion. Trying to get an interview with Wayne was useless as usual, and sending a drone in the air to try and see if the kid was even there from a higher vantage point ended with her drone suddenly exploding in midair, putting her down three hundred dollars of her boss's property.

And then it started raining right as she left work for the day, exhausted, having been to every part of town in the single day, nearly out of gas, with no coat and not having eaten since six AM when she was woken early by her neighbor's domestic argument.

All she wanted was some coffee, sugar, and a nice quiet atmosphere as she turned off the main road onto Palm Street, which had her favorite waffle house, glancing at the windows looking forward with all her heart to the warm lighting-

She screeched to a halt so suddenly she nearly hit her head on the steering wheel.

Right there in the window. She knew him, she'd _followed_ him. She'd attended his funeral three years ago. He was only a little bit older, his hair with a flash of white in the front, but the Wayne blue eyes and dark hair were _unmistakeable._

She threw her door open right there in the rain, charging for the front door, glad to high heaven she hadn't worn heels, threw open the door and turned right to face down the aisle-

There was no one there. The table was empty, not even a plate on it. The entire restaurant was empty of customers at this late – early – hour.

"Excuse me, Ma'am, are you alright?" The hostess asked, coming out from the back.

"The boy! The boy who was in that booth over there! Where did he go! Did he leave through the back?"

The woman's face went too blank. Vicki saw the lie coming. "Ma'am, we haven't had any customers since an elderly man at around midnight, who sat at the b-"

"Lies!" Vicki snapped. "Where did he go? Out the back?"

"Ma'am, have you been fear gassed? We have some antidote on hand ever since last y-"

Frustrated, Vicki turned on her heel, just in time to see her car drive away - with _the boy_ at the wheel, flashing her a familiar superior wide grin trademark of any Wayne child, white teeth and obviously amused as he peeled away.

“MY CAR!” Vicki shrieked, turning to the waitress. “Quick, call the police!”

The waitress, looking shocked, ran for the phone.

It took them forever to arrive, the officer stepping out of his car with a glare at the rain. Fifteen minutes she spent staring wide-eyed out the window, mind racing. A cover-up, faking his death, but why, what reason, why such extremes, and a child of that rich brat Wayne at that- how could he even have-

The officer closed the door with a sigh and shivered. “I got a report of a stolen car?”

“Yes! My car – he took it right in front of my eyes, the little brat! Please, you have to get it back, it’s a company car! Silver. Honda. License plate C-A-R-J-K-D-U.”

“You recognized him?”

“Yes! He- I can’t believe it myself – it was… Jason Wayne.”

The officer paused in his notes.

“… Jason Wayne?”

“Yes! I’m a reporter, I used to run his stories. The younger brother of Richard Wayne, before Bruce Wayne adopted the other younger ones. I know it’s – nuts – but you have to believe me… officer...”

“Grayson.” The officer replied lightly.

“Officer Grayson.” Vikki nodded, frazzled.

“Okay. Ma’am, I think you may have been given a low dose of fear ga-”

“Iiiii wasNT GASSED!” Vicki shrieked, voice cracking.

The officer shot the terrified and nervous waitress a look, and the woman swallowed. “Ma’am, I’m sorry, there wasn’t...”

“I didn’t imagine him!” Vicki snapped. “I know what I saw!”

“The car?!?” The panicking woman squeaked. “There wasn’t anyone stealing the car! The uh… there was… no… car?”

Vicki shrieked wordlessly. “LIAR! YOU’RE A TERRIBLE LIAR!” She yelled.

“Ma’am.” Officer Grayson cut in with a bit of sharpness. “I must ask you to watch your tone, the woman has done nothing wrong. This is a Robin diner.” He pointed at the red ‘R’ painted in the window. “What do you think would happen if they got the word you were harassing one of the employes that offer them a place to keep emergency medical supplies while on the job?”

“I don’t care!” Vicki snapped hysterically. “I SAW HIM I SAW JASON WAYNE! HE’S ALIVE!”

“Ma’am, calm down-”

“OFFICER GRAYSON I DEMAND YOU GO AFTER MY CAR THIS INSTANT! YOU SERVE THIS CITY AND JASON WAYNE STOLE MY CAR YOU HAVE TO-”

“THERE WAS NO CAR!”

Vicki flung herself at the police officer with a shriek, trying unsuccessfully to claw at him, fighting against his grip as the police officer wrestled her around enough to put handcuffs on her, pulling her out into the rain under the dark sky and toward the police car.

“I SAW HIM! IT’S A CONSPIRACY – HE FAKED HIS DEATH – JASON WAYNE IS ALIVE! YOU’RE PART OF IT AREN’T YOU- YOU’RE PROTECTING HIM! THIS WAS A SETUP! WAYNE INFILTRATED THE GOVERNMENT, PAID YOU OFFICERS OFF! WELL, I WILL NOT STAY SILEN-”

Her words were cut off by the soundproof glass as the door to the police car closed behind her.


End file.
